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Japan 2010 - Part 3 - Kyoto
Wednesday July 28 to Saturday July 31
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Well that was fun......The local train to our transfer point was slow, sedate and full of tourists going elsewhere. L sat by the window and watched the scenery pass. Saw fishermen in the river with poles that were 4 times or more the height of the users, tea bushes, lots of traditional roofs, and occasionally in a farmyard the family burial plot. It was never located that far from the main house either. We made our transfer in Nagoya with about 5 minutes to spare. We discovered we were on the bullet train for the run to Kyoto.
In Kyoto, several people stopped to give us help reading the subway map and one man walked us to the proper gate and explained how to find the platform from there. Two subway trains later we found ourselves on the street facing a 4 1/2 block (mostly uphill) walk. L was very glad to find the lobby of the hotel and give the bags over to a porter. He had run to get cool bottles of water for us after hearing we had walked up from the subway station.
Our Hotel room in Kyoto
The toilet room and the washroom
The bathroom
A shower, a short rest and a change of clothes later we went to one of the hotel restaurants for a pizza and 2 beer. At $44 we will not be eating any meals we have to pay for here....The hotel, like most hotels in Japan, caters to businessmen with large expense accounts.
We went down to the complimentary cocktails and had a couple of glasses of wine, some small sushi appetizers (ham on sticks) some toast points covered in Liver paste (L made J eat them) and had a very pleasant conversation with the general manager who made a point of coming by to say hello.
We then went back upstairs and put on the t-shirts we had travelled here in (the sweat was dried), and went out for a walk to find a beer and some supper. We wound up in a little 3 table establishment with no English speakers, no picture menu, no plastic food. We ordered the Asahi no problem but then had difficulty with the food order. Cell phones came out and soon a teenager was called in. I'm sorry to say we didn't get her name, 17 and a very lovely young lady she helped translate for us. With her help and some suggestions from the staff on what was good, we agreed to the okonomiyaki. The table behind us (who's order was just ready, and who, apparently, was enjoying the entertainment) sent theirs over as a gift.
They would not let us buy them a round of drinks in exchange, so we had a beer and the okonomiyaki (a form of Japanese omelet or pancake) which was just wonderful. We laughed and "talked" with the people there and everyone was happy that we managed. We gave the young lady one of L's pen's that J happened to have with him. L will have to replace it for J sometime soon. Feeling happy, a little smug, and much sated, we returned to the hotel for the night. L has chosen to sleep in the hotel-supplied yukata in hopes of containing the sweats that she is bound to have from all this late food.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
L managed to contain the sweats last night and actually got a few hours sleep. J did reasonably well but new beds every other night does take its toll. Before going down to breakfast, we took some pictures from our window of the Zen garden below us. It is actually one floor below street level. We can see the windows of the Sushi restaurant on the lower level and the windows of the ground floor restaurant (where breakfast is served) above that. L went down to the restaurant first so that she could take a picture of J sitting in the open window of our room. She also took more pictures of the Zen garden from the restaurant level.
The view from our room
The view of our room
The view from The Grill
The Continental breakfast in the hotel was from a larger continent than most European breakfasts; it included eggs and bacon and even a cook carving ham, not to mention the smoked salmon, breads, salad, fresh fruit and 4 varieties of yoghurt. On our way back to the room, L took a picture of the floral arrangement in the lobby.
Lobby display
Our Lonely Planet guide to Kyoto recommended a walking tour of the temple district in the Southern Higashiyama district of Kyoto, not too far from our hotel. We got a little off course after the first temple but managed to get back on the map without too much trouble. No problem though, we found some nice photo ops along the way.
A little rain won't keep us home
Lotus Plants
Lotus Plants & J
Interesting Gargoyles
Near the first temple was also a very large cemetary. Being on a hill-side, it was multi-tiered and reminded us of the cemeteries in New Orleans except it was more crowded and far larger. We are tempted to send one of the pictures to the NCIS TV show for Abby to use as her computer's desktop background.
Huge Cemetary
One of the first temple sites we visited was also one of the largest, the Kiyomizu-Dera Temple. It even had a "special feature" that the guide book says shouldn't be missed. It required a donation of 100 yen (about $1). You took off your shoes, put them in a bag to carry with you, and then went to the top of a stair case. The man there pointed at the hand rail and said "you put" (your hand on and don't take it off!), down the stairs and into the dark! I mean really dark, and the handrail became a series of beads that rolled in your hand as you walked along. The straight sections weren't bad but the corners were a surprise when they happened. L noticed the floor actually had a track worn in, you could feel the higher edge on the right hand side if your foot came down a bit out of line. Eventually you came around a corner and there was a stone with a symbol carved on the top that represents the mother of Buddha "Daizuigu Bosatsu" When you got there (oh it had a pinhole of light so the character seemed to float) you put your free hand (right) on the stone circle it and make a "fervent" wish. If your wish is strong enough and if the Buddha’s mother agrees it will be granted. Then you continued a few more feet and around another corner and into the light, up another set of stairs and back where you started. A most unique experience. The temple site, overall, was impressive and it had a very good view of the city.
Map of Kiyomizu-Dera Temple
It would be a magnificent view "on a clear day"
Silly Tourist beside no photo sign
Temple details
There were a lot of shops in this area and we found one that sold yukatas of the type that J's mother wanted. There were two blue robes to choose from, one with cranes and one with cherry blossoms. J joked that we shouldn't pick the one with cranes because they are symbols of long life and J doesn't want to wait forever to inherit from his mother. L smacked him on the forehead which quite scandalized the staff in the store until L explained why she was doing it and, apparently, they all agreed it was deserved. They packaged up Angie's Yukata in a paper wrapper, a plastic wrapper and a plastic bag, which was then presented to L. L held out the pretty carry bag she had purchased in Takayama and appreciative noises were made as the package was placed inside. The weather was mostly overcast with some drizzle and some actual light rain. We both had small umbrellas, though, and had no problem with the weather since it was, as a result, much cooler than it could have been.
Street scenes
Lunch
Street scenes
There were about 7 or 8 temples that the guide book pointed out as worth seeing but there were many more scattered in between, most of those, though, where not open to the public. Still, there was lots to see.
Pet the mini-buddahs walk
So lush and green
Sleeping Buddah
Fountain and cleaning the gates
Ducks and pond
The largest temple, and a camphor tree
The whole walk was about 5 km long, followed by a 5 km walk back to the hotel. In all, about 6 hours or more of walking. Our feet still tend to throb after about 3 or 4 hours of walking but our legs are holding out much better than they did on the first few days of walking in Tokyo. Having worked up a good frothy sweat, however, we did our usual after-walk shower, put on our yukatas, and relaxed for a while in our room before getting dressed again and going down to the bar for a beer. After a couple of beers (it was happy hour after all and the beers were half-priced), we talked to the concierge about where to go for a drink and some evening snacks. She recommended a place called Manzo's about four blocks down Shichijo-dori street. It was a nice medium-size restaurant with a sushi bar and a large variety of dishes to choose from. L had the vegetarian udon bowl and J had the Manzo special udon bowl. They also had Asahi beer on tap. All in all, a very good meal though it lacked some of the adventurousness of the previous nights foray.
Finally, back to the hotel to sleep, perchance to sweat.
Friday, July 30, 2010
After breakfast we walked down to the main train station to catch the train to Arashiyama. The guide book said they had a "monkey park" near there so that gave us a destination for the day. The book said that they also have a "bamboo forest" so we could take in more than one attraction. Fortunately, it was a downhill walk to the train station, across the river (where we saw some birds fishing) and into downtown.
Fishing our way
After finding an international ATM, we bought our tickets and were off to Arashiyama. It was a nice little town. We wandered through the streets for a while and then headed for the Park. I think it cost about $5 each to get in to the monkey park and then you got to climb, and climb, and climb and climb (anybody seeing a trend here) up the side of a small(?) mountain where they have the monkey research station. J pointed out that, if we had tried to do this on our first day in Japan, we probably would have died half way up. The coroner would have been fascinated though; "They've been dead an hour and they are still huffing and puffing!".
On our way to the Monkey Park
As you crest the hill/mountain you see a building with monkeys walking around and a young ranger in a uniform sitting by the door.
The rest station/ monkey feeding station
The ranger opens a cooler and gives you a frozen wet wipe. Then she opens the door of the building and says "please go in". There are several long bench seats, fans blowing, the always present vending machine of cold drinks, and a counter where you can buy a small bag of peanuts or chestnuts to feed to the monkeys. The monkeys hang on the screen and reach a hand inside for the peanuts.
Feed me
Too fast, behind the post, just right!
More please
They do not bother you outside of the building because no one is allowed to hand-feed them outside, and the people in uniform do make sure that rule is followed. It all seems to work well. We got some good photos.
Doing monkey things
Just sitting around
The view of Kyoto from the mountain
The ranger saw us taking pictures of the view and offered to take our picture with one of the monkeys.
Us with a friend
The walk down the mountain was much easier. L took a few pictures along the way of mushrooms growing out of the side of the hill and of an odd looking tree trunk.
Mushrooms & Liana
We took a few pictures at the foot of the mountain and then headed back into town for lunch.
River at the foot of the mountain
River at the foot of the mountain
We checked out several places and wound up in one with the best looking plastic food. J had a rice bowl with beef and onions and leeks, also the ever present bowl of miso soup. L had a bowl of noodle soup with chicken and leeks. We both had 2 or 3 glasses of water and a large Asahi beer. In all a wonderful lunch.
A very common sight in Japan is statues of Tanuki. Tanuki is, among other things, the Japanese God of Restaurateurs. It is a sort of Japanese raccoon/dog and is considered a symbol of virility (look close, but not too close) and gluttony. Wikipedia has an interesting article on Tanuki including a verse from a schoolyard song that we think our Renn Faire friends Iris and Rose would enjoy.
Tanuki is seen everywhere in Japan
On to the bamboo forest......It was quite the sight and I'm not sure the pictures really do it justice. It does seem as though they go through and keep it thinned out some. There were chips on the floor, and the trees seemed to be evenly spaced, 2 to 3 feet apart and almost in rows.
Bamboo Forest
Bamboo Forest
Bamboo Forest
We stopped at a small train station for a rest on our way back downtown. They had a very nice little model village. We took a few more pictures on our way to the train station downtown.
Train model & the real thing
manhole covers are different in every city
Back in downtown Kyoto, we decided that, rather than walking all the way back, we would figure out the bus system. We picked one of several buses that went by our hotel and the fare was 220 Yen (about $2) each. L's throbbing feet said it was worth every penny.
After an Asahi in the hotel bar we were feeling pretty good and only a little bit cocky, so we went on the night hike. We took the local bus north about 6 stops (kind of where the temple area started) and then down the street rather than up the hill. Into some traditional back alley type places where L spotted a maico headed out to an appointment. J was reading a food menu and missed her. We found a little hole in the wall where they had sticks for J and a salad for L (oh and a beer). J had a nice variety of sticks on combination plate, there were chicken balls, chicken liver, chicken skin, 2 of chicken meat, and a chicken meat with welsh onion (leeks). He thought it was really good. L's salad came with greens, ripe tomato, tofu and a large pinch of little fishes. They are about 1/4 to 1/2 inch long and about 2 or 3 mm thick, the largest thing about them is their little eyes which are quite noticeable as they are black, the rest of the fish is almost clear.......of course that just blows the whole no animal protein thing, even if the 3 beer today hadn't. L is expecting to have a warm night, because there seems to be some rule about her not having 2 good nights in a row.
We stopped by the river on the way back to the subway and just sat and watched the water go by. There were a lot of couples doing that, just sitting and talking, some were even talking to each other....
Evening walk in Kyoto
Evening walk in Kyoto
Back to the hotel for 9:30 where we plan to read for a while before sleep.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
We slept in! Fortunately, J had set the alarm to go off so that we didn't sleep in too late. A shower, dressed and went to breakfast. We were late, they were very busy, we were seated at the bar. It was a long walk to the food, but we've had a bit of practice at long walks lately.
We went out to the same area as last night's night walk. There is a food market a bit further down the road, and 2 covered streets with shopping of every other kind.
The Kyoto market
Covered streets and Scenic street
We should mention that in Japan you walk on the left, you dodge left and if you are getting on an escalator you queue left and stand on the left side. If you insist on climbing it you have a clear shot on the right. People line up to stand on the left side of the escalator. You get a gaijin trained to stand on the left then go into a major department store and reverse the rules! Shaking head here, please stop confusing me! Actually, while talking to a waiter one evening, we found that customs in Tokyo is far more formal and rigid than the rest of Japan. Like most countries we've visited, life in the capital is not necessarily indicative of life in the rest of the country.
We had spotted a steak house when on the night walk. They specialized in Wagyu beef. They even had the pedigree certificate complete with nose print of the current steer on display outside the door. We timed things to get there about noonish and found it closed. So were 3 other places, none open till 4 PM or later. We found a little upstairs restaurant that was open and had the Japanese version of "beef stew". So we didn't get the really expensive beef for lunch but we did eat at a restaurant with Japanese-style seating for the first time. That's the remove your shoes and sit on the little cushion at the table that is just high enough to get your folded knees under. Good thing we are flexible. Oh and the waitress had very little English, the menu had none and the pictures left a lot to be desired. No plastic food at this place, but beer is universal.....
After what was a very nice lunch, we headed back to the subway and our hotel. L took a picture of a mural in the subway station that she thought was really cool.
Subway art
We stopped at the concierges desk for a map to an ATM, it was up the hill around the corner and down 2 blocks in the direction we haven't gone yet. After replenishing the cash reserves, we went to the museum across the street from our hotel. The guide book panned it quite badly, but we enjoyed it none the less. It would have been better to get the audio guide (if they had one in English) or to be able to read Japanese. It really means nothing to see the poem or letter without understanding. The scrolls, screens and paintings were all very lovely though. A fair portion of the grounds were shut off and there is construction going on. They are building another display hall.
Back to our hotel for our afternoon shower (I've never showered so much in my life) and into the fresh yukatas for our afternoon rest. We won't have to go down to the bar for happy hour today. The General Manager has left us a bottle of wine and 2 beautiful (huge) ripe figs....
A gift from the hotel GM
Tomorrow morning, we head back to Tokyo for the final leg of our trip.